Source: Telegraph
Chelsea Manchester City and Real Madrid: Transfer superpowers
MANCHESTER CITY: Transfer kitty: Manager Mark Hughes has a bottomless pit at his disposal, but he could get through £150m this summer. Related ArticlesPremier League Transfer TalkTop 20 transfer targetsMilan: Kaka deal not discussed with RealRibery will 'not be sold'Zhirkov: No Chelsea offerMan City sign £12m BarryWhere does the money come from? Club owner Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed al-Nahyan sits on some of the world's largest oil reserves in Abu Dhabi and his family fortune is reportedly in excess of £560 billion. Money is simply no object. Sheikh Mansour sanctioned the £32.5m British record signing of Robinho less than 24 hours after buying the club from Thaksin Sinawatra last September and he has already provided more than £100m for team rebuilding. On the day that Gareth Barry was signed for £12m, Sheikh Mansour made a profit of £1.5bn by selling a stake in Barclays. His wealth makes City the richest club on the planet. Shopping list: Gareth Barry has already arrived in a £12m transfer from Aston Villa, with Joleon Lescott (£12m), Roque Santa Cruz (£12-15m), Samuel Eto'o (£25m) and Carlos Tevez (£25.5m) likely to follow. Midfielder Stephen Ireland has been handed a lucrative new contract too. The failed £91m move for Kaka in January suggests that City will move quickly for the game's biggest stars if they get the slightest hint of availability this summer. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------REAL MADRID: Transfer kitty: Newly-elected president Florentino Perez is ready to hand new manager Manuel Pellegrini £120m to rebuild the team at the Bernabeu. Where does the money come from? Real are owned by more than 80,000 members, known as 'socios', but the real power lies with the president, who is elected every four years. The president shapes the club's transfer policy, but Real's standing as the establishment club of Spain enables them to find whatever money is required for new players. Current president Perez is a billionaire construction magnate with vast independent wealth, but Real are able to call on their close links with the government and royal family whenever finances are tight. Shopping list: Kaka (£55m), Franck Ribery (£40m) and Xabi Alonso (£20m) are Real's top targets and a deal for Kaka seems as good as done with AC Milan. Cristiano Ronaldo remains a target, but Manchester United are adamant that the Portuguese is not for sale, even at £80m. Wigan winger Antonio Valencia is another player on Real's radar and they could rival Manchester City for Tevez. But Real have a simple philosophy. If a player is worth buying, the money will be found. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------CHELSEA: Transfer kitty:Carlo Ancelotti can look forward to spending £100m before he starts his first campaign as Chelsea manager. Where does the money come from? Primarily, the oil fields of Siberia, much of which are owned by Roman Abramovich, Chelsea's multi-billionaire benefactor. Abramovich has kept his hands in his pocket in recent seasons after initially transforming the face of football with a £200m shopping spree in his first three seasons at Stamford Bridge. But an abortive move for Kaka proves that Abramovich is now ready to spend big again and Chelsea are ready to go head-to-head with City and Real when it comes to signing the world's best players. Shopping list: A new contract for German midfielder Michael Ballack has already been thrashed out, but that will be small fry in comparison to the deals that Chelsea hope to pull off. AC Milan forward Pato could arrive in a £35m deal, while CSKA Moscow's Yuri Zhirkov is an £18m target. Andrea Pirlo (£20m) and Emmanuel Adebayor (£25m) are on also Ancelotti's hit-list. And if Kaka's move to Madrid falls through, Chelsea will be ready to close the deal.